Clone Wars 3.01 Clone Cadets and 3.02 Arc Troopers

|Sep 20, 2010 2:50 pm|Mar 27, 2018 1:14 pm

If you were wondering why the third season of Clone Wars kicked off with two episodes, it’s because they really go together as one story; although not as a two-part cliffhanger. Clone Cadets, the Season Three premiere, may seem slow to some, but it’s key in setting up some characters who play a much bigger part in the second episode. It mostly focuses on Domino Squad, five Clone Cadets who just can’t seem to pass the final test that future Clone Troopers must. Through a little inspiration from a failed batch clone named 99 and a little interference on the part of their Bounty Hunter trainer, the squad naturally does come through and become Clone Troopers.

Again, it’s a slower episode than you’d expect for a season premiere. Yet it’s a nice bit of lore. We see how the Clones react to each other in their bunks, and there’s a little hint about how stressed the Kaminoians are about Jango being dead and having to stretch his DNA so thin. They even tell the Jedi to find someone else to serve as a source for the clones. Will we see that happen in a later season? Perhaps they find some Bounty Hunter who just can’t hit a target with a blaster as a source for the Stormtrooper DNA.

The second episode, Arc Troopers, is what you’d expect from a season premiere. In a word? EPIC.

Grievous launches an attack on Kamino and the Republic responds. The result is action on a scale worthy of the Star Wars name. Huge set pieces, such as the crumbling clone incubation chambers to the action in the finale, really stamp the “Star Wars” name on the episode and honestly everything in this episode would fit right in on the big screen. You have saber duels, a massive space battle, character development, and even a death of a character introduced in the previous episode. If the rest of Season Three is as good as Arc Troopers; Star Wars fans are in for a big treat this year.

Clone Wars airs Friday nights on Cartoon Network at 9:00pm, and StarWars.com posts the most recent episodes for online streaming after they air. So if you miss an episode, head over to the site within the next day to check it out.